Stunning Siphonophore

E/V Nautilus, the current ship of exploration of Titanic discoverer Dr. Robert Ballard, is exploring the ocean studying biology, geology, archeology, and more. Watch http://www.nautiluslive.org for LIVE video from the ocean floor. For dive updates follow along on social media at http://www.facebook.com/nautiluslive and http://www.twitter.com/evnautilus on Twitter.

This beautiful colonial organism drifted past Hercules’ cameras, and we followed it for as long as we could keep track. They are made up of many smaller animals called zooids, and can be found floating around the pelagic zone in ocean basins around the world. One famous siphonophore species is the deadly Portugese Man O’ War.

About Us:

The Ocean Exploration Trust was founded in 2008 by Titanic discoverer Dr. Robert Ballard to engage in pure ocean exploration. Our international programs center on scientific exploration of the seafloor and many of our expeditions are launched from aboard Exploration Vessel (E/V) Nautilus, a 64-meter research vessel operated by the Ocean Exploration Trust. In addition to conducting scientific research, we offer our expeditions to explorers on shore via live video, audio, and data feeds from the field. We also bring educators and students of all ages aboard during E/V Nautilus expeditions, offering them hands-on experience in ocean exploration, research, and communications.

About Siphonophore:

The Siphonophorae or Siphonophora, the siphonophores, are an order of the Hydrozoa, a class of marine animals belonging to the phylum Cnidaria. Although a siphonophore appears to be a single organism, each specimen is actually a colony composed of many individual animals. Most colonies are long, thin, transparent pelagic floaters. Some siphonophores superficially resemble jellyfish. The best known species is the dangerous Portuguese man o’ war (Physalia physalis). With a body length of 40–50 m (130–160 ft), another species of siphonophore, Praya dubia, is one of the longest animals in the world.[more on Wikipedia]